Continuing with Gatun Locks South End No. 2 Range Light this
week and still limping along with my little laptop computer.

I have done
lots of searching this past week for more information about this
tower, especially why and when it was demolished. Above is an
early 1920's brochure that was published by the Panama Pacific Line
ships that has a really nice artists conception of the locks and the
ornate little range light. What a great image. Below is
another early 20's image/photo that I found that has the tower still
in place (see the yellow arrow).

I did find
some controversial and negatives about this tower in a couple of
places and seem like this little tower was not liked from the very
beginning:

The
Scientific American July 12, 1913:

In
our issue of February 8th of this year we drew attention to the fact
that the Panama Canal was in danger of being cheapened by the crude
character of some of the structures which were being erected and to
prove our contention we illustrated a range or light tower which had
been built on the center wall of the lake approach to the Gatun Locks.
This structure designed in the offices of the engineering force at the
Isthmus is no doubt strong stable and perfectly adapted to its purpose
of showing a light in a certain location at a fixed elevation for all
time to come but considered as an architectural work it is about as
ugly and inharmonious a piece of design as mortal eye ever looked
upon. We had hoped that by this time the tower had been replaced
either by a more graceful design in reinforced concrete or by a steel
tower of open work construction similar in general outline to the
Eiffel Tower. We understand however that any change in this direction
is strongly opposed by the engineer in charge of that particular class
of work.

The SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN commends this matter to the serious attention
of the chairman of the Isthmian Canal Commission in the hope that he
will authorize the expenditure of the relatively small amount of money
that will be necessary to remove the present structure from its very
conspicuous position and put in its place something that would be
consistent with the dignity and great excellence of the engineering
work at the Gatun.

Again
in a report from the Canal Record:

There
is a tragedy connected with the third or return track of the towing
railroad which runs down the middle of the center wall. It had to be
there and so did the range light that will guide ships across the lake
into the upper fore bay of the locks. So they stuck that dignified
lighthouse up on four bandy legs like a mangrove on its roots and when
the Art Commission come down from Washington and see it they will say
unkind things of the engineers.

So...with
a bad start in the life of this little tower, it was surely destined
to be removed one day. It is only guess work at this time until
I/we find more documentation of when and why it was demolished.

The
bottom photo is a nice shot that CZ Images contributor Bill Fall
took on a transit in 2009 which shows the light tower that is being
used today in the the same spot that the old tower was. Bill
tells me that a new type of light called the PEL Sector Light is now
being used here and many other ranges of the Panama Canal.